Abu Dhabi Declared Actions Cities of Opportunities: Connecting Culture and Innovation - | Urban ...
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Abu Dhabi Declared Actions
Cities of Opportunities:
Connecting Culture and Innovation
1. We, the participants of the tenth session of the World Urban Forum, represent national,
subnational and local governments, international and regional organizations, parliamentarians, civil
society, older persons, women, youth, children, persons with disabilities, grassroots groups,
indigenous peoples and local communities, professionals, the private sector, foundations and
philanthropies, academia, professionals and other relevant stakeholders. Together we gathered in
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, to dialogue on the theme “Cities of Opportunities, Connecting
Culture and Innovation.” Now, at the conclusion of this World Urban Forum we declare our
voluntary actions and commitments for the next two years and beyond. We do so in support of the
implementation of the New Urban Agenda as an accelerator to achieve the Sustainable
Development Goals in this Decade of Action.
2. We recognize that an increasingly urbanized world constitutes a transformative force which
can be harnessed and steered for more sustainable development. Cities have the opportunity to
take the lead to plan and design as well as manage transitions towards inclusion, resilience,
sustainability, economic growth and shared prosperity. At the same time, cities are addressing many
global challenges including poverty, gender inequalities, human rights violations, unemployment,
health emergencies, loss of social cohesion, threat to cultural heritage and cultural diversity,
environmental degradation, migration, disaster risk and climate change.
3. We, the participants of WUF 10, are convinced that culture is an integral part of the solution
to the challenges of urbanisation and achieving the New Urban Agenda. The urban environment, in
turn, has an influence on culture. Culture is a core component of local identity including heritage,
creativity and diversity and urbanisation need to be planned, designed and managed to enhance
this. Culture is considered by some constituencies as the fourth pillar of sustainable development
and must be a stronger strand of global solidarity. Culture and heritage are essential in the context
of peoples’ empowerment as well as their universal access to services, and ownership of
regeneration and social cohesion strategies. Urban heritage—both cultural and natural—is an asset
and enables sustainable urban development. Revitalising cities whilst respecting urban heritage
allows us to celebrate the past while embracing a sustainable future. It limits the negative impacts
of city sprawl while also reducing waste, infrastructure needs and transportation costs. Strategic
integrated urban planning provides the tools to ensure the integration of urban heritage, culture,
local economic needs, environmental considerations, biodiversity, low carbon development and
climate resilience to ensure the creation of sustainable, prosperous, liveable
1|Pagecommunities. Attention to the urban rural continuum and to nature in cities is essential.
Participatory community engagement and innovation are key means to achieve this.
4. We believe that cities are centres of creativity and innovation as well as places with valuable
cultural heritage and identity. The culture and creative industries are rapidly expanding sources of
employment and economic development in cities and urban areas globally. Innovation and cultural
heritage must at the foundation of how urban centres operate, with strong support from national
governments, a strengthened role for subnational and local governments and systematic
collaboration with civil society. Cities that are well-planned and well-managed, grounded in cultural
heritage, have more opportunities for sustainable urban development. Supported by people-
centred technology, smart city initiatives and fit-for-purpose land governance, culture and
innovation become creative drivers for sustainable growth, shared prosperity and inclusive
development.
5. We also believe that cities are incubators of social, economic, environmental, political and
cultural progress. They are equally the guardians of cultural heritage and identity which must be
safeguarded to pass on to future generations. Subnational and local governments play an integral
role in enhancing the diversity of urban life, through the adoption of rights-based approaches to
cities and, in particular, with the promotion of gender equality and equal access to opportunities
for all. They provide solutions for decent work, housing, and transport, the provision of basic cultural
services such as libraries, tangible and living heritage, and community centres and adopt inclusive,
accessible, and transparent participatory processes.
6. The New Urban Agenda acknowledges the importance of culture, cultural diversity and
cultural heritage in all its forms as resources that enrich humankind, making an important
contribution to sustainable urbanization and the development of inclusive safe cities and human
settlements, empowering all people to play an active role in development initiatives.
7. We celebrate cultural heritage as a valuable resource to be protected and safeguarded in its
diversity of expression and forms. These assets inspire innovation and creativity in cities and human
settlements, creating and implementing new knowledge and solutions to improve living conditions
for all. We emphasize that women and girls are key agents of transformative change in their cities.
Culture offers a perspective on leaving no one and no place behind as it enables women and girls to
identify with their heritage and make their voice heard through creative means. Women and girls
must have effective and equal ways to participate through cultural expressions as well as innovative
and inclusive decision-making.
8. We encourage stronger commitments to safeguarding culture heritage and finding related
innovative solutions to accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development, the Sustainable Development Goals, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, the Sendai
Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, the Paris Agreement, the New Urban Agenda and other
global frameworks.
9. We recognize the need for an integrated approach to the implementation of the New Urban
Agenda by all levels of government and by various stakeholders. This includes enhanced
2|Pagecoordination and coherence supported by institutional, social and technological innovations which
protect tangible and intangible cultural heritage. This is crucial for the achievement of sustainable
urban development and the overall prosperity of cities and human settlements.
10. We also recognize that innovation and advances in science and technology are critical for
implementing the NUA, achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, and other global
development frameworks relevant to sustainable urbanization.
11. We draw attention to the importance of data and knowledge as a fundamental starting point
to understand gaps and needs. We acknowledge the need to critically link data to evidence-based
policy formulation, development of action plans and sources of funding. In this regard we welcome
the New Urban Agenda monitoring platform, City Prosperity Initiative, and other platforms such as
the Culture 2030 indicators. In this respect, the global people-based definition of cities and
settlements (Degree of Urbanization), will be a crucial instrument for collecting comparable data
and facilitating harmonised reporting in the implementation of the SDGs.
12. We encourage stakeholders to declare their actions towards strengthening investments and
efforts in developing better data platforms to support evidence-based policies and investments and
accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.
13. We believe that together sustainable urbanization, culture and innovation are fundamental
in supporting the Decade of Action. We aim to accelerate the implementation of the Sustainable
Development Goals which call for sustainable and inclusive solutions to all the world’s biggest
challenges. Cities represent an entry point for all 17 SDGs and create a window of opportunity for
sustainable urban development. Service provision, density and economies of scale are factors that
bind all development goals together.
14. We encourage all development actors gathered in Abu Dhabi to mobilize their respective
capacities in this Decade of Action. We will continue to call for actions and mobilisation and track
progress through a monitoring and reporting mechanism. At the global level, this requires strong
leadership, more resources and smarter solutions. At the local level, this includes shifts in policy,
budget, institutions, and regulatory frameworks to make cities safe, resilient and sustainable,
grounded in cultural heritage and creative practice. At the people level, we call for a movement of
youth, civil society, media, private sector, academia and others to advocate for social and economic
transformations. We want to raise awareness of all stakeholders: the cities we build today are
tomorrow’s heritage.
15. We thank the Government of the United Arab Emirates and the City of Abu Dhabi, and UN-
Habitat for convening the Forum. And we commit to providing continuous cooperation to the next
hosts, the Government of Poland and the City of Katowice.
Abu Dhabi, 13 February 2020
3|PageAnnex to the Abu Dhabi Declared Actions of WUF 10
Declared Actions
We welcome and recognize the diverse commitments made by participants during WUF 10.
International Organizations
The European Union (EU) and its Member states reaffirmed their commitments for accelerating
the implementation of the New Urban Agenda in the EU and beyond. The EU and its member
states declared their tangible actions to support sustainable urban development in particular the
Urban Agenda for the EU, the Global people-based definition of cities and settlements, and the
International Urban Cooperation programme notably fostering global city to-city cooperation.
The EU Cohesion Policy and the EU development cooperation are also major instruments to
support this ambition.
▪ The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction in partnership with UCLG, ICLEI, the World
Bank, UN-Habitat, the World Council on City Data and the Global Resilient Cities Network
(Rockefeller Foundation) recognize the urgent need for reducing risks in urban areas, in
coherence with the New Urban Agenda, the Sendai Framework, Paris Agreement and the 2030
Agenda. These organizations commit to making cities resilient by 2030, during the Decade of
Action, through support to cities from their tools and knowledge products, their regional offices
and networks and associations, and improved coordination with national governments and
leaders of local governments.
▪ UN-Habitat commits to pursuing the development of the New Urban Agenda monitoring
platform with the aim to systematize updates on progress and enhance knowledge sharing and
innovations related to the implementation of the New Urban Agenda.
▪ The Resident Coordinators System will:
o Endeavor to work with governments and local and non-State actors to promote sustainable
urbanization to further the development objectives of the UN country teams in the areas of
spatial equality and poverty eradication, prosperity and economic development, climate
action and environmental sustainability, and crisis reduction and recovery.
o Incorporate sustainable urban development as part of the development of the various
instruments of the UN country teams, including: Common Country Analysis (CCA), the United
Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (also known as Cooperation
Framework), the implementation coordination groups of the results areas of the
Cooperation Framework, and the monitoring of the implementation of the results areas.
o Actively promote the implementation of the United Nations Systemwide Strategy for
Sustainable Urban Development among Resident Coordinators by creating spaces for UN-
4|PageAnnex to the Abu Dhabi Declared Actions of WUF 10
Habitat participation in United Nations country team retreats, regional meetings of Resident
Coordinators, and through global and regional webinars, among other forums.
▪ World Blind Union (WBU) in partnership with UN-Habitat agrees to implement an agreement to
accelerate UN-Habitat’s work towards mainstreaming disability inclusion, universal design and
accessibility within its strategies, policies, programs and operations in line with the Agenda
2030, the New Urban Agenda, United Nations Disability Inclusion Strategy. WBU commits to
contribute to awareness raising and learning on universal design by publishing a special issue of
the Journal on Public space in partnership with City Space Architecture prior to World Urban
Forum 11.
▪ The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) commits to:
o Promoting greater respect for international humanitarian law during urban warfare to
strengthen the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure; and support resilient, safe,
and impartial urban services for urban populations during armed conflicts and other
situations of violence, including through innovative funding mechanisms.
o Promoting urban planning and design which positions military installations at an appropriate
distance from the civilian population, civilian infrastructure, and cultural property in
accordance with international humanitarian law.
o Partnering with States and local governments to: 1) raise awareness of the effects of
urbanisation on humanitarian trends and vice versa; 2) collaborate to strengthen urban
systems and local services for community resilience; 3) work to improve individual and
collective capacity to a) respond swiftly to anticipated and realised humanitarian challenges
in urban areas, and b) engage in urban planning and investment processes that reduce future
disaster risk; 4) work to decrease the vulnerability and exposure of the urban poor,
particularly those living in slums and informal settlements; 5) work in partnership to catalyse
and localize investment in the necessary human, technical and financial resources to reduce
future disaster risks and the effects of climate change.”
▪ The Association of Commonwealth Universities, Commonwealth Association of Architects,
Commonwealth Associations of Planners and Commonwealth Local Government Forum commit
to the development of an inter-disciplinary, cross-sectoral collaboration, working to advance
sustainable urbanisation in the Commonwealth; home to one third of the World's population
and nearly 50% of the projected increase of the World's urban population to 2050.
National Governments
▪ Fiji commits to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
5|PageAnnex to the Abu Dhabi Declared Actions of WUF 10
▪ National governments reiterate their commitments to support the implementation of the
NUA, particularly with regard to innovation and culture to help achieve liveable, inclusive,
prosperous and resilient cities and communities, notably:
o The Government of Senegal will deploy the necessary efforts to use Islamic Finance in the
application of land-value capture.
o The Special Olympic Saudi Arabia will implement inclusive sports across major cities through
partnerships between a minimum of one major university in each of the big cities and all
facilities by 2021.
Local and Regional Governments
The commitments made by LRG at the World Assembly of Local and Regional Governments
convened by the Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments, during WUF10 are as
follows:
The constituency of LRG encourages all stakeholders are involved in local, territorial, national, and
international plans to carry out the New Urban Agenda as an accelerator for the SDGs, to make
this achievement a global endeavour so that our communities can find ownership in these
agendas and truly make them a reality, addressing the challenges as one humanity. The
constituency of LRG commits to developing a sustainable development model that is strongly
anchored in culture and human rights, upholding public service provision to ensure adequate
living standards for all; the Right to the City needs to be a reality. The constituency of LRG assumes
a more prominent role for cities and local and regional governments in the discussions regarding
the ecological transition, to localize climate action, prioritise nature-based solutions and
traditional knowledge, and mainstream both nature and culture in sustainable urbanization. The
constituency of LRG commits to foster locally relevant cultural policies and programmes to
maximize the relationship between cultural rights, memory, creativity, diversity and knowledges,
to integrate heritage and culture in urban planning and to promote global cultural partnerships as
strands of solidarity and vectors for peace; the promotion of culture as the fourth pillar of
sustainable development needs to be pursued. The constituency of LRG commits to
understanding innovation beyond technology, placing communities at the centre of the agenda,
and securing a technological revolution that services the communities, that guarantees equal
access by all people, that fosters women empowerment, and that goes beyond the notion of
consumerism. The constituency of LRG commits to continue consolidating the World Assembly of
Local and Regional Governments as the representative mechanism through which our
constituency provides inputs to the global agendas, building on the realities and expertise of our
communities.
The LRG further recognizes:
6|PageAnnex to the Abu Dhabi Declared Actions of WUF 10
- The urgent need for reducing risks in urban areas, in coherence with the New Urban
Agenda, the Sendai Framework, Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda, in order to save
lives and livelihoods.
- The urgent need to strengthen mechanisms for citizen participation that facilitate and
measure women’s agenda setting and leadership roles in planning and decision making
- The urgent need to recognize and value the participation, knowledge and expertise of
women and girls (across their diversities) by convening dialogue and agenda setting
processes that value lived experience, cultural expression, and grassroots community
generated data as innovative inputs to public policy making and programming
The implementation of the Global Compact on Inclusive and Accessible Cities (Cities of Abu
Dhabi, Helsinki, Barcelona, Banjul, and Almaty)
In the context of Voluntary Local Reviews the cities of Barcelona, Rostov-on-don, Betio Town,
Kuala Lumpur, San Justo, Tandil, Seberang Prai, Buang, Sipalay City, Brussels Capital Region,
Tawau, Esplugues de Liboregat, Turkestan City and Acapulco de Juarez, join previous signatories in
their commitment to: i) identify how existing strategies, programs, data, and targets align with the
Sustainable Development Goals; ii) To provide at least one forum where stakeholders can come
together to share experiences, lessons learned, and information gathered using the framework of
the Sustainable Development Goals; and 3) To submit a Voluntary Local Review to the United
Nations during the United Nations High-Level Political Forum.
Private Sector
The private sector commits to:
Finance
▪ Learning from venture capital funding and embracing that approach to financing urban
development.
▪ By 2030, local governments can draw from a selection of financing mechanisms to achieve
SDGs and increase their opportunities and overall sustainability.
▪ Exploring different types of financing (Islamic finance, land-based finance, land-value capture),
and to better adjust to local contexts and risk profiles of low-income groups.
▪ Working towards ensuring that the specific and strategic infrastructures, most needed for the
realization of the SDGs, are identified and coupled with appropriate financing mechanisms
(Standard Chartered Bank and Rendeavor).
▪ Ensuring that SDG investment plans are financially sustainable (Webank).
▪ Exploring further applications of land-based finance to resolve issues of urban finance and city
planning.
Training and information and awareness
7|PageAnnex to the Abu Dhabi Declared Actions of WUF 10
▪ Supporting the development of an Inclusive City Index 2030 in partnership with public and
private sector to measure inclusion and accessibility in cities (World Enabled)
Political, inclusion and social engagement
▪ Engaging in dialogue with a network of cities to ensure technology is accessible to all
(Mastercard).
▪ Promoting of a culture of evidence-based policies which ensures that local and regional action
attempts to address actual problems on the ground.
Civil Society
Civil Society organizations commit to:
Community engagement and inclusion
▪ Raising awareness around accessible and inclusive urbanization in Nairobi through writing
blogs and articles in newspapers and public campaign including sharing knowledge, guidelines
and other resource materials (Elizabeth Ombati commits herself as a journalist with disability
and through her organization Users and Survivors of Psychiatry).
▪ Enabling staff to have essential skills on embracing innovation with inclusiveness policies and
programs on Universal Design (Joint Association of Persons with Disabilities Nigeria commits to
advocate for capacity building of Government Agencies in the city of Abuja, Nigeria).
▪ To engage private sector and grassroots communities to identify innovative design solutions
that are sustainable and affordable for the urban poor.
▪ Recognizing grassroots communities in their important contributions and supporting them in
building and scaling-up impactful partnerships with governments.
▪ Enhancing and accelerating practical and strategic partnerships with mayors and local
authorities to improve the living and working conditions of women in poor communities and
expand grassroots women’s public decision-making roles.
▪ Ensuring knowledge, good practice and tools of rural and urban poor and indigenous women’s
groups are mainstreamed in poverty reduction and women’s empowerment initiatives (local-
national-regional levels).
Training, information and awareness
▪ OHANA Indonesia commits to continue partnering with five government municipalities to
achieve JOGJA Accessible 2024 and take concrete actions to 1) develop action plans,
including conduct of trainings for government officials who work for infrastructures,
advocacy for inclusive budgeting and realization of accessibility audits in 5 districts and
municipalities; 2) monitor and evaluate actions including budget related to maintenance
and improvement of accessibility in public spaces including government offices.
▪ Advocating for commitment of timeline implementation and strategies for the New Urban
Agenda in Abuja, Nigeria.
8|PageAnnex to the Abu Dhabi Declared Actions of WUF 10
▪ Sensitizing communities and grassroot groups through continuous education to partner with
local government, academia, civil societies.
▪ Setting up an aggregated development data database which is accessible to the local
community (and to which they contribute data) so that realities are understood, and gaps and
biases are easily identified.
▪ Sensitizing communities and grassroot groups through continuous education to partner with
local government, academia, civil societies.
▪ Strengthening data collection efforts by grassroots communities through sensitization of
national and local governments and create avenues for joint partnerships.
▪ Investing in stronger accountability mechanisms for local grassroot communities that rely on
innovation to track project implementation.
▪ Investing in contribution of grassroots data and knowledge systems with the national statistics
offices and contribute to the achievement of SDGs based on credible people-focused data and
information.
▪ Investing in retaining the practices, knowledge and culture of Indigenous peoples and use this
for improved urban & territorial planning including environmental protection.
Academia
▪ Advancing the development and use of spatial data, such as data from remote sensing and GIS,
which holds significant opportunity for improved city governance, and is becoming more
readily available at fine geographic scales.
▪ Using administrative data, which cities have held in a variety of mostly unusable formats for
decades to improve the efficiency of everyday city functioning.
Other groups
Grassroot communities commit to:
▪ Strengthening data collection efforts through sensitization of national and local governments
and create avenues for joint partnerships.
▪ Investing in contribution of grassroots data and knowledge systems with the national statistics
offices.
▪ Investing in stronger accountability mechanisms for local grassroot communities that rely on
innovation to track project implementation.
The youth associations commit to:
▪ Invest in retaining the practices, knowledge and culture of Indigenous peoples and use this for
improved urban & territorial planning including environmental protection.
▪ Enhancing the science-policy interface through citizen-generated data from formal, informal,
traditional and indigenous sources; participatory and community-based technology
9|PageAnnex to the Abu Dhabi Declared Actions of WUF 10
assessment; building digital and complementary skills that promote sustainable livelihoods;
and designing appropriate innovations that fill gaps in the territorial dimension of sustainable
urbanization.
The Women’s Assembly constituents collectively commit to sustain the role of the Women’s
Assembly as a key space for convening diverse actors (grassroots leaders, local authorities,
planners, researchers and NGO activists) working across themes and sectors to share the best
practices, knowledge, tools and advocacy women are locally leading to advance empowerment
and gender responsive and inclusive urban and settlement development and cities; and to take
inventory, track and monitor:
▪ the actions of the women’s constituency in localizing and implementing the 2030 agenda and
New Urban Agenda.
▪ the actions of governments and other key stakeholders in achieving measurable progress in
gender responsive implementation and expands women’s public leadership roles (across their
diversities).
▪ challenge cultural norms through collective acts as disruptions to patriarchal cultural.
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